Traveler: BrewDog’s DogHouse

The beer scene in Columbus, Ohio, is hopping—and includes the world’s first brew-hotel.

Alyssa Konermann

April 12, 2019

Courtesy BrewDog

Check-in is not normally among the most anticipated moments of a hotel stay. Ditto the complimentary breakfast. But BrewDog’s DogHouse Columbus, which opened in August, flips that standard on its head. For one, the check-in desk looks and functions more like a bar: You get a free beer of your choice along with your key (a real key, with a keychain and everything). And that breakfast? More like huevos rancheros, roasted potatoes, and beer-mosas.

EAT
It’s fine dining in the front, laid-back taproom in the back, and live herbs on the
wall at Wolf’s Ridge Brewing.

CAFFEINATE
The cutest cafe you ever did see is Fox in the Snow. Order a New Orleans iced coffee and housemade custard doughnut.

INFO
Experience Columbus

Traveler’s Log

You wouldn’t have to leave the 42-acre grounds at all. There’s great food at the taproom, which adjoins the Scottish craft-beer company’s brewing facility, slated to start pumping out suds for guests later this year. Outdoor recreation is on hand for you and your pooch (select rooms here are dog-friendly) by way of a multi-mile trail, two ponds, and a dog park, and there is a surprisingly comprehensive beer museum on site, too. Plus, each of the 32 rooms is unique, with wrought iron and wood, BrewDog ephemera, and luxury bedding. But you came for the choice of in-room suds on tap via a growler system and a fridge full of beers, right next to the shower—which also has a mini beer cooler in the wall.

But BrewDog chose Columbus as its stateside HQ for a reason: the growth of the city’s beer scene and the collaborative nature within it. BrewDog itself has two other taprooms. And right across the street from its Franklinton spot, Land-Grant Brewing features a huge beer garden where you can sip on tasters of its Brewer’s Series (they rotate, but we loved the dry-hopped sour and the mole porter).

On the other end of the atmospheric spectrum, Hoof Hearted Brewing is a pump-you-up, rainbow-explosion sensory overload from the second you walk in. To wit: The coasters show a koala playing sax atop a pile of fruit, and they specialize in frappé-style beer, made with lactose and sugar. To mellow out, hit Antiques on High, Seventh Son Brewing’s moody, swanky companion facility, and home for its sour and wild beers.

When you’re done for the day, back at the DogHouse, rainfall showers, locally made soap infused with Elvis Juice IPA, and the Netflix and dreamy beds will help you recuperate.